Los Angeles Declares Public Schools “Sanctuaries”

Los Angeles Creates More Sanctuary Zones

In their newest act of “non-cooperation,” Los Angeles has decided that they will make their public schools “sanctuaries.” The Los Angeles Unified school board passed their resolution on Tuesday.

The resolution’s goal is to make LAUSD campuses safer for immigrant students as well as their families. This means mom and dad will also be protected from ICE as long as they are on campus.

This resolution was proposed by board members Monica Garcia and Ref Rodriguez after the arrest of Romulo Avelica-Gonzalez, who was an undocumented immigrant detained by ICE for taking his daughter to school.

Girl’s Father Detained For Dropping Her Off At School

“My father was detained in front of me on Feb. 28 on the way to school,” said Fatima Avelica, 13, who recorded her father’s arrest with her phone. She and her sister Yuleni Avelica, 12, joined Garcia, Rodriguez and other organizers behind the resolution at a press conference Tuesday morning ahead of the board vote. “I’m here to ask that the (LAUSD makes) schools sanctuaries so that nobody else can pass through what I passed through and not be scared to go to school,” Avelica said.”

“Garcia and Rodriguez created the resolution in concert with a recently formed coalition of organizations, including the ACLU and California Charter Schools Association called California Schools Are Sanctuaries Coalition, which formed in response to Avelica-Gonzalez’s arrest. Avelica-Gonzalez remains detained at Adelanto Detention Facility, according to Jennifer Cuevas, who is representing the two girls.”

LA’s Newest Sanctuary School District

“The district has not declared itself a “sanctuary school district.” Similarly, Los Angeles, under Mayor Eric Garcetti, has not formally declared itself a sanctuary city, a term for which there is no clear legal definition. Both the city and the school system, however, have immigrant-friendly policies.”

“Leaders in Los Angeles and other California cities have repeatedly said they will not allow their local law enforcement officers to act as de facto immigration agents. “